Interactive venue assistant

ABSTRACT

Methods and systems for assisting a user at an event and venue are described. A user is guided or navigated to different points of interest at a venue. The points of interest include seat locations or surrounding services and facilities, such as restaurants, shops, and restrooms. Advertisements and promotions associated with surrounding services may be displayed to the user. The user may be notified of the presence of friends and family at the same venue, and be provided with real-time information about the event.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.14/997,421, filed on Jan. 15, 2016, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,891,056, issuedon Feb. 13, 2018; which is a continuation of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 14/185,772, filed on Feb. 20, 2014, now U.S. Pat. No.9,310,205, issued on Apr. 12, 2015; the disclosures of both of theseapplications and patents are incorporated by reference herein.

BACKGROUND Field of the Invention

The present invention generally relates to providing an augmentedreality experience and location-based services for a user at an event,such as a sports game, theater event, or concert.

Related Art

An individual attending a real-time event in person may desireinformation related to the real-time event, such as the servicesavailable at the location or venue of the real-time event and anyfriends that are present at the location of the real-time event.Further, the individual may desire that information in such a way as toaugment his or her viewing of the environment at the event.Conventionally, the desired information may be provided in a venue mapor guide with details regarding food offerings, merchandise stores,restrooms, and ATM locations. This information, however, is notpresented to the user in a useful form, and is not catered to the user'spersonal choices. Accordingly, it would be beneficial to deliver morepersonalized information to the user to assist the user at an event andvenue.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG, 1 is a is a block diagram of a networked system suitable forimplementing the methods described herein according to an embodiment ofthe present disclosure:

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a computer system suitable for implementingone or more components in FIG. 1 according to one embodiment of thepresent disclosure; and

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing a method of assisting a user at an eventaccording to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Embodiments of the present disclosure and their advantages are bestunderstood by referring to the detailed description that follows. Itshould be appreciated that like reference numerals are used to identifylike elements illustrated in one or more of the figures, whereinshowings therein are for purposes of illustrating embodiments of thepresent disclosure and not for purposes of limiting the same.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present disclosure describes techniques for assisting a user at avenue with an augmented reality environment. Augmented reality providesa user with a live view of a physical, real-world environment, augmentedwith artificial computer-generated sound, video and/or graphicinformation. A device typically displays the live view of the physical,real-world environment on a screen or the like, and the artificial,computer-generated information is overlaid on the user's live view ofthe physical, real-world environment.

Augmented reality can be incorporated and used on smartphones and otheruser devices. Mobile devices, especially wearable ones that may be inthe form of eyewear (e.g., Google Glass®), mobile-enabled wrist watches,or head-mounted displays, are available to provide augmented realityexperiences to users. Such devices typically include display technologyby which computer information is overlaid on the scene in front of theuser.

In an augmented reality environment, relevant information regarding alocation, event, and/or venue can be rendered or presented to the userso as to augment the user's view of the location, event, and/or venue.Such information or data can be about a person, place, or object that isin or near a particular geographical location. Further the device canassist the user at the venue by providing information that is relevantto a specific time (e.g., before, during, or after the event). Forexample, the device may determine that a break or intermission is comingup and recommend a bathroom or snack break to the user.

The present disclosure provides systems and methods that guide ornavigate users to points of interest at a venue for an event and/orprovide other relevant information. For example, the methods may providedirections to the user, wherein the directions are overlaid on theuser's view of the environment. In other examples, the methods andsystems help users discover surrounding restaurants, shops, restrooms,and other services and facilities at a venue. In some embodiments, thecontacts in the user's social network that are present at the venue canbe automatically detected, and the user can share his or her experienceand view his or her contacts' experience. In addition, the methods andsystems may provide real-time information about the event in the venueand recommend product and/or services with coupons, discounts, or otherpromotions.

In various embodiments, when a user requests information regarding aspecific point of interest, the methods and systems take the informationfor that point of interest and anticipate what the user may requestnext. For example, if the user asks the device for a restaurant that iskid-friendly, the device may also display information associated withkid-friendly activities at the venue, such as playgrounds or parks. Inanother example, if the user has requested a place that serves drinks,the device may note the nearest restroom when the user passes by or whena break is close.

Beginning with FIG. 1, an exemplary embodiment of a computing systemadapted for implementing one or more processes involving assisting auser at an event is illustrated in block diagram format. As shown,computing system 100 may comprise or implement a plurality of serversand/or software components that operate to perform various methodologiesin accordance with the described embodiments. Exemplary servers mayinclude, for example, stand-alone and enterprise-class servers operatinga server OS such as a MICROSOFT® OS, a UNIX® OS, a LINUX® OS, or othersuitable server-based OS. It can be appreciated that the serversillustrated in FIG. 1 may be deployed in other ways and that theoperations performed and/or the services provided by such servers may becombined or separated for a given implementation and may be performed bya greater number or fewer number of servers. One or more servers may beoperated and/or maintained by the same or different entities.

Computing system 100 can include, among various devices, servers,databases and other elements, a user 102 that may comprise or employ oneor more user devices 104, such as a mobile computing device, a wearablecomputing device such as a smart watch or smart goggles, a PC, and/orany other computing device having computing and/or communicationscapabilities in accordance with the described embodiments. User devices104 generally may provide one or more user programs 106, such as systemprograms and application programs to perform various computing and/orcommunications operations. Exemplary system programs may include,without limitation, an operating system (e.g., MICROSOFT® OS, UNIX® OS,LINUX® OS, Symbian OS™, Embedix OS, Binary Run-time Environment forWireless (BREW) OS, JavaOS, a Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) OS,and others), device drivers, programming tools, utility programs,software libraries, application programming interfaces (APIs), and soforth. Exemplary application programs may include, without limitation, aweb browser application, messaging applications (e.g., e-mail, IM, SMS,MMS, telephone, voicemail, VoIP, video messaging), contacts application,calendar application, electronic document application, databaseapplication, media application (e.g., music, video, television),location-based services (LBS) application (e.g., GPS, mapping,directions, point-of-interest, locator), and so forth. One or more ofuser programs 106 may display various graphical user interfaces (GUIs)to present information to and/or receive information from one or more ofuser devices 104.

User device 104, in one embodiment, includes a geo-location componentadapted to monitor and provide an instant geographical location (i.e.,geo-location) of the user device 104. In one implementation, thegeo-location of the user device 104 may include global positioningsystem (GPS) coordinates, zip-code information, area-code information,street address information, and/or various other generally known typesof geo-location information. In one example, the geo-locationinformation may be directly entered into the user device 104 by a uservia a user input component, such as a keyboard, touch display, and/orvoice recognition microphone. In another example, the geo-locationinformation may be automatically obtained and/or provided by the userdevice 104 via an internal or external GPS monitoring component. Inother embodiments, the geo-location can be automatically obtainedwithout the use of GPS. In some instances, cell signals or wirelesssignals are used. This helps to save battery life and to allow forbetter indoor location where GPS typically does not work.

In one aspect, when interfacing with the user device 104, the user 102may elect to provide or may be prompted to provide permission for therelease of geo-location information. Accordingly, the user 102 may haveexclusive authority to allow transmission of geo-location informationfrom the user device 104 to the network-based system 110. In anyinstance, the network-based system 110 may communicate with the userdevice 104 via the network 108 and request permission to acquiregeo-location information from the user device 104 for geo-location basedmobile commerce.

As shown, user 102 can be communicatively coupled via one or morenetworks 108 to a network-based system 110 managed by an online serviceprovider, such as, for example, StubHub, Inc. of San Francisco, Calif.Network-based system 110 may be structured, arranged, and/or configuredto allow user 102 to establish one or more communication sessions withnetwork-based system 110 using various computing devices 104 and/or userprograms 106. Accordingly, a communication session between user 102 andnetwork-based system 110 may involve the unidirectional and/orbidirectional exchange of information and may occur over one or moretypes of networks 108 depending on the mode of communication. While theembodiment of FIG. 1 illustrates a computing system 100 deployed in auser-server operating environment, it is to be understood that othersuitable operating environments and/or architectures may be used inaccordance with the described embodiments.

Data and/or voice communications between user 102 and the network-basedsystem 110 may be sent and received over one or more networks 108 suchas the Internet, a WAN, a WWAN, a WLAN, a mobile telephone network, alandline telephone network, a VoIP network, as well as other suitablenetworks. For example, user 102 may communicate with network-basedsystem 110 over the Internet or other suitable WAN by sending and orreceiving information via interaction with a web site, e-mail, IMsession, and/or video messaging session. Any of a wide variety ofsuitable communication types between user 102 and system 110 can takeplace, as will be readily appreciated.

In various embodiments, computing system 100 can include, among otherelements, a third party 112, which may comprise or employ a third-partyserver 114 hosting a third-party application 116. In variousimplementations, third-party server 114 and/or third-party application116 may host a web site associated with or employed by a third party112. For example, third-party server 114 and/or third-party application116 may enable network-based system 110 to provide user 102 withadditional services and/or information, such as additional ticketinventory. In some embodiments, one or more of user programs 106 may beused to access network-based system 110 via third party 112. Forexample, user 102 may use a web user to access and/or receive contentfrom network-based system 110 after initially communicating with a website of third-party 112.

Network-based system 110 may comprise one or more communication servers120 to provide suitable interfaces that enable communication usingvarious modes of communication and/or via one or more networks 108.Communication servers 120 can include a web server 122, an API server124, and/or a messaging server 126 to provide interfaces to one or moreapplication servers 130. Application servers 130 of network-based system110 may be structured, arranged, and/or configured to provide variousonline marketplace and/or ticket fulfillment services to users thataccess network-based system 110. In various embodiments, user 102 maycommunicate with application servers 130 of network-based system 110 viaone or more of a web interface provided by web server 122, aprogrammatic interface provided by API server 124, and/or a messaginginterface provided by messaging server 126. It can be appreciated thatweb server 122, API server 124, and messaging server 126 may bestructured, arranged, and/or configured to communicate with varioustypes of user devices 104 and/or user programs 106 and may interoperatewith each other in some implementations.

Web server 122 may be arranged to communicate with web users and/orapplications such as a web browser, web browser toolbar, desktop widget,mobile widget, web-based application, web-based interpreter, virtualmachine, and so forth. API server 124 may be arranged to communicatewith various user programs 106 and/or a third-party application 116comprising an implementation of API for network-based system 110.Messaging server 126 may be arranged to communicate with variousmessaging users and/or applications such as e-mail, IM, SMS, MMS,telephone, VoIP, video messaging, and so forth, and messaging server 126may provide a messaging interface to enable access by user 102 and/orthird party 112 to the various services and functions provided byapplication servers 130.

When implemented as an online ticket marketplace, application servers130 of network-based system 110 may provide various online marketplaceand ticket fulfillment services including, for example, accountservices, buying services, selling services, listing catalog services,dynamic content management services, delivery services, paymentservices, and notification services. Application servers 130 may includean account server 132, a buying server 134, a selling server 136, alisting catalog server 138, a dynamic content management server 140, apayment server 142, a notification server 144, and/or a delivery server146 structured and arranged to provide such online marketplace andticket fulfillment services. Application servers 130 are adapted toreceive ticket information associated with an event, provide a user withinformation on a specific point of interest based on the ticketinformation, and navigate the user to the specific point of interest.Points of interest include the location of friends and/or family,restaurants, restrooms, and/or attractions at a venue. Based on thepoints of interest, application servers 130 can propose and recommenduser actions at the venue.

Application servers 130 may be coupled to and capable of accessing oneor more databases 150 including a subscriber database 152, an activeevents database 154, and/or a transaction database 156. Databases 150generally may store and maintain various types of information for use byapplication servers 130 and may comprise or be implemented by varioustypes of computer storage devices (e.g., servers, memory) and/ordatabase structures (e.g., relational, object-oriented, hierarchical,dimensional, network) in accordance with the described embodiments.

Continuing with FIG. 2, an exemplary computer system 200 suitable forimplementing one or more devices of the computing system in FIG. 1 isdepicted in block diagram format. In various implementations, a devicethat includes computer system 200 may comprise a personal computingdevice (e.g., a smartphone, a computing tablet, a personal computer,laptop, PDA, Bluetooth device, key FOB, badge, etc.) that is capable ofcommunicating with a network. The service provider may utilize a networkcomputing device (e.g., a network server) capable of communicating withthe network. It should be appreciated that each of the devices utilizedby users and service providers may be implemented as computer system 200in a manner as follows.

Computer system 200 can include a bus 202 or other communicationmechanism for communicating information data, signals, and informationbetween various components of computer system 200. Components include aninput/output (I/O) component 204 that processes a user action, such asselecting keys from a keypad/keyboard, selecting one or more buttons orlinks, etc., and sends a corresponding signal to bus 202. I/O component204 may also include an output component, such as a display 211 and acursor control 213 (such as a keyboard, keypad, mouse, etc.). Anoptional audio input/output component 205 may also be included to allowa user to use voice for inputting information by converting audiosignals. Audio I/O component 205 may allow the user to hear audio. Atransceiver or network interface 206 transmits and receives signalsbetween computer system 200 and other devices, such as another userdevice, a merchant server, or a payment provider server via a network.In one embodiment, the transmission is wireless, although othertransmission mediums and methods may also be suitable. A processor 212,which can be a micro-controller, digital signal processor (DSP), orother processing component, processes these various signals, such as fordisplay on computer system 200 or transmission to other devices over anetwork 260 via a communication link 218. Processor 212 may also controltransmission of information, such as cookies or IP addresses, to otherdevices.

Components of computer system 200 also include a system memory component214 (e.g., RAM), a static storage component 216 (e.g., ROM), and/or adisk drive 217. Computer system 200 performs specific operations byprocessor 212 and other components by executing one or more sequences ofinstructions contained in system memory component 214. Logic may beencoded in a computer readable medium, which may refer to any mediumthat participates in providing instructions to processor 212 forexecution. Such a medium may take many forms, including but not limitedto, non-volatile media, volatile media, and transmission media. Invarious implementations, non-volatile media includes optical or magneticdisks, volatile media includes dynamic memory, such as system memorycomponent 214, and transmission media includes coaxial cables, copperwire, and fiber optics, including wires that comprise bus 202. In oneembodiment, the logic is encoded in non-transitory computer readablemedium. In one example, transmission media may take the form of acousticor light waves, such as those generated during radio wave, optical, andinfrared data communications.

Some common forms of computer readable media includes, for example,floppy disk, flexible disk, hard disk, magnetic tape, any other magneticmedium, CD-ROM, any other optical medium, punch cards, paper tape, anyother physical medium with patterns of holes, RAM, PROM, EPROM,FLASH-EPROM, any other memory chip or cartridge, or any other mediumfrom which a computer is adapted to read.

In various embodiments of the present disclosure, execution ofinstruction sequences to practice the present disclosure may beperformed by computer system 200. In various other embodiments of thepresent disclosure, a plurality of computer systems 200 coupled bycommunication link 218 to the network (e.g., such as a LAN, WLAN, PTSN,and/or various other wired or wireless networks, includingtelecommunications, mobile, and cellular phone networks) may performinstruction sequences to practice the present disclosure in coordinationwith one another.

Where applicable, various embodiments provided by the present disclosuremay be implemented using hardware, software, or combinations of hardwareand software. Also, where applicable, the various hardware componentsand/or software components set forth herein may be combined intocomposite components comprising software, hardware, and/or both withoutdeparting from the spirit of the present disclosure. Where applicable,the various hardware components and/or software components set forthherein may be separated into sub-components comprising software,hardware, or both without departing from the scope of the presentdisclosure. In addition, where applicable, it is contemplated thatsoftware components may be implemented as hardware components andvice-versa.

Software, in accordance with the present disclosure, such as programcode and/or data, may be stored on one or more computer readablemediums. It is also contemplated that software identified herein may beimplemented using one or more general purpose or specific purposecomputers and/or computer systems, networked and/or otherwise.

The various features and steps described herein may be implemented assystems comprising one or more memories storing various informationdescribed herein and one or more processors coupled to the one or morememories and a network, wherein the one or more processors are operableto perform steps as described herein, as non-transitory machine-readablemedium comprising a plurality of machine-readable instructions which,when executed by one or more processors, are adapted to cause the one ormore processors to perform a method comprising steps described herein,and methods performed by one or more devices, such as a hardwareprocessor, user device, server, and other devices described herein.

Referring now to FIG, 3, a flowchart of a method 300 for assisting auser at an event is illustrated according to an embodiment of thepresent disclosure. It should be appreciated that the method illustratedin the embodiment of FIG. 3 may be implemented by the systemsillustrated in FIGS. 1 and/or 2 according to one or more embodiments.

The method 300 begins at step 302, where the user 102 provides ticketinformation associated with an event to a service provider. Ticketinformation includes, but is not limited to, the event, the venue, thetime, artist, duration of the event, seat information (e.g., section,row and number), etc. For example, the user 102 can open up a mobileapplication or “app” run by the service provider, and choose a specificticket from a list, or the user 102 may scan a physical ticket toprovide the ticket information.

At step 304, the service provider determines a location of the user 102through the user device 104. The user device 104, in one embodiment,includes a location determination device (e.g., a GPS device, a celltower triangulation system device, and/or a variety of other locationdetermination devices known in the art) that is operable to determine acurrent location of user device 104.

The user 102 may release geo-location information to the serviceprovider by, for example, setting release parameters. In one aspect, theuser geo -location information includes user information related to aphysical location or position of the user device 104, which is passed tothe network-based system 110 via the network 108. The user geo-locationinformation may include GPS coordinates (e.g., longitude and latitude)inherent to the user device 104, such as a mobile cellular phone, and/orzip-code information. The user geo-location information may include useridentifier information identifying the user 102. The user 102 maymanually set geo-location information, such as a zip code and/orlongitude and latitude coordinates.

At step 306, the service provider navigates or guides the user 102 tohis or her seat. The service provider may have earlier received from theuser 102 the user's seating at the venue to use as needed, or may haveobtained the user 102's seating by having access to seats purchased bythe user 102. In an embodiment, the user 102 requests the serviceprovider, through the mobile application, to take the user 102 to his orher seat. In another embodiment, the application automatically pops upon the user device 104 when the user 102 enters the venue and asks theuser 102 if the user wants to be taken to his or her seat.

In one embodiment, the user 102 may use the camera of user device 104such as an iPhone or an iPad to receive directions. For example, thedisplay of the user device 104 may show arrows or a map to augment theuser's view of the venue. In one example, a two-dimensional indoor mapof the venue augments the user 102's view of the venue on the userdevice 104, along with arrows that point in the direction the user 102should be walking. In still another embodiment, directions may beprovided based on the user's preferences previously sent to the system110. For instance, if the user 102 requires elevators, the directionswill point the user 102 in the direction that includes elevators. If theuser 102 needs a ramp, the directions point the user 102 to the ramps.Otherwise the mobile application may be free to point out directionsusing stairs.

In some embodiments, service provider overlays the time left anddistance to the seat on the user 102's view. For example, the distanceleft to get to the seat may be displayed as 150 meters, and the time toget to the seat may be displayed as 2 minutes. As the user 102 getscloser to his or her seat, the time and distance decrease. In variousembodiments, the service provider determines the walking speed of theuser 102, and employs this information to provide an estimate of howmuch longer and how much farther it will take for the user 102 to get tohis or her seat. In one or more embodiments, a radar map is alsooverlaid on the user 102's view.

The route or directions for the user 102 to get to the seat may varydepending on different factors, such as time remaining before the eventstarts, time remaining before doors close, congestion along one or moreareas along a potential route, etc. For example, the user 102 may beprovided a longer route in terms of distance, but shorter in terms oftime required to get to the seat based on the longer route having lesscongestion along the way, especially if the event is about to start ordoors are about to close. If there is plenty of time before the user 102should be at the seat, the route may provide suggestions for restroomsand/or concession stands that are less congested along the way to theseat. This may prompt the user 102 to go to the restroom and/or make afood/drink purchase because the user 102 is made aware and realizesthere is time before the event starts. As such, the route may depend onthe user's current location, the location of the seat, time until theevent, estimated time for the user to arrive at the seat, and congestionalong a route or at restrooms, concession stands, or other areas along aroute.

When the service provider detects that the user 102 has arrived at hisor her seat, the mobile application may display a message or icon on theuser device 104 to remind the user 102 that he or she has arrived at theseat, and prompt the user 102 to take a picture of the view from theseat. The app may then suggest sharing the picture on the user 102'ssocial networks.

At step 308, based on the location (e.g., venue) of the user device 104,the event at the venue, and/or the time, the service provider providesinformation regarding points of interest at the specific venue. Pointsof interest include where contacts (e.g., friends or family) are seatedor located, food service providers or retail stores, surroundingfacilities (e.g., restrooms, ATMs, pay phones, water fountains, etc.),attractions (e.g., displays, shows, presentations, etc.), and landmarks.

In one embodiment, an iPhone or iPad may function as a “set ofeyeglasses,” providing the user 102 with information relevant to theuser's personal choices as the user 102 moves the user device 104 fromplace to place within the venue. For instance, as the user 102 walks outof the user's seating section, the user device 104 may show the locationof places that the user 102 may be interested in, for example theclosest bathroom, the bathroom with the shortest lines that is stillnearby the user, or a bathroom that is outfitted for the handicapped,and guide the user 102 to the place(s). The guidance or route may dependon factors, such as described earlier. For example, if the event isstill going on (e.g., not during an intermission or stoppage of play),the user 102 may be directed to locations that will enable the user 102to get back to the seat as soon as possible, such as restrooms and/orconcession stands that may be a bit farther, but have much shorter linesor no lines. If the user 102 is leaving during an intermission orstoppage of play, the system may estimate how long before the eventresumes in order to provide a more intelligent route. For example, ifthe user 102 is leaving at the start of halftime of a football game, theuser 102 may be provided a route that is not as time sensitive as if theuser 102 is leaving a baseball game between innings. This can be done bythe camera of the user device 104.

The user 102 can configure the app to provide information based onpreviously provided information regarding the user 102 and specificpoints of interest. For example, the user 102 may indicate whether thereare any infants, children, disabled, or elderly people in the party. Theuser 102 may also have input specific points of interest before enteringthe venue, such as type and location of a restaurant (e.g.,kid-friendly, handicap accessible, etc.), bathrooms, handicappedbathrooms, an exit closest to where the user 102 is parked, and thelike. The user 102 may then send the system 110 a request for thedesired information to augment the reality of his or her view of thevenue.

In another embodiment, the user 102 can request the information inreal-time. For example, as the user 102 walks away from his or her seatand towards concessions or restrooms, the user 102 can request generalinformation (e.g., “Let me see all the restrooms” or “Let me see all therestaurants”), or specific information (“Notify me when I am within 100meters of a place that sells food”). In response to the general request,the service provider can display a list of restrooms at the venue, theirdistance from the user 102, and whether they are busy or vacant. Theservice provider can also display a list of food service providers atthe venue, their distance from the user 102, and any promotions (e.g.,coupons, deals, sales, etc.) associated with the food service provider.In an embodiment, the information is arranged and displayed based on thedistance from the user 102.

In one embodiment, the service provider provides information to the user102 based on the user 102's position in the venue. For example, as theuser 102 walks by a restaurant within the venue, a message relating tothe restaurant can be presented on the user device 104, including anyrelated advertising.

Other embodiments may include the user 102 requesting the serviceprovider to display the shortest path out of the venue to where the user102 parked his or her car. The service provider may receive a feed ofroad traffic, and the user 102 could request the parking lot exit fromwhich to leave in order to encounter the least traffic, the fastest wayhome, or the route that has the least traffic, or the route that passesa particular restaurant, or that passes several restaurants on the wayhome, and the service provider could respond with that information fordisplay on the user device 104.

Another embodiment may show the user 102, for example by arrows, wherefriends of the user 102 are seated in the stands of the venue, and showthe distance to the friends' seats. This may be implemented, as oneexample, by the user 102 sending the service provider a query for theseat location of a friend. Responsive to this query, the serviceprovider may read the friend's phone number from the user's cell phonecontact list and, in conjunction with a GPS satellite system, determinethe seat location, generally or specifically, of the cell phone that hasthe friend's phone number. The service provider may then respond to theuser 102 with information as to the friend's seat location, including,if desired, placing an arrow on the display of the user device 104pointing to the location of the friend's seat, augmenting the viewer'spersonal reality of viewing the venue live.

In an alternate embodiment, instead of GPS technology, the serviceprovider may have stored in its database the names of people whopurchased the various seats for the event, and may then, upon requestfor the seating of a particular person, search for the name of thatperson to find the person's seat location. Again, if desired, an arrowpointing to the seat location may be placed upon the image of the userdevice 104 in order to augment the reality of the live viewing of thevenue.

In yet another embodiment, the friend may have posted on a socialnetwork such as Facebook the section, row, and seat number where thatfriend will be sitting. The user 102 may then read this seating off thefriend's Facebook wall and send that information to the serviceprovider, for use by the service provider in augmenting the user device104 by, as one example, pointing on the device's display to the point inthe venue where that seating is located.

Advantageously, the app can determine what information to provide anddisplay to the user 102, based not only on the venue and event, but alsoon the time. Because the service provider knows what event the user 102is at, the service provider understands event timing (e.g., before theevent, during the event, intermission/interlude/interval, after theevent, etc.). Because the service provider knows what venue the user 102is located in, the service provider knows what services and products areavailable to the user 102. Combining knowledge of the particular venue,event, and time, the app can recommend or push information relevant tothe user 102 for that specific time, specific event, and specificlocation.

For example, assume the user 102 requests the app to find a place tograb a snack during a concert. The app determines the time of therequest (e.g., during the concert), and because most concert-goers areenjoying the concert and not buying food, the app directs and navigatesthe user 102 to the closest concession stand. In another embodiment, theuser 102 requests the app to find a place to eat, but the request isreceived during intermission in the concert. In this case, the app maydirect the user 102 away from food services that are closest to theseats, away from the crowds.

In various embodiments, the app determines the current time and pushesnotifications and/or advertisements to the user 102. The app can guesswhat the user 102 can do at a certain time and provide promotions thatare relevant for that time. For example, the app determines that theuser 102 has free time because there is an intermission. The app canpresent opportunities to fill the time, such as shopping, dining,visiting the restroom, making a call, etc. The app can also providepromotions that can be used during that time (e.g., 20% discount on hotdogs before the start of the third basketball quarter). In anotherexample, the user 102 is a big fan of a sports team, the game has notstarted yet, and the user 102 is passing by a souvenir shop so the appproposes that the user 102 stop and spend some time browsing in theshop.

In other embodiments, the app can guess what the user 102 wants to do,based on information it has received from the user 102 at the venue. Forexample, suppose that the user 102 has requested a place that providesdrinks a few times, and the user 102 has purchased a couple of sodas.The app can suggest the nearest restroom when the user 102 passes by, orwhen a break or intermission is close.

The app can further provide real-time event information and updates tothe user 102, such as sports scores. In the specific example of a carracing event, the real-time information can include: the currentranking; number of laps remaining; participants still in the race;participants no longer in the race; fastest lap of the current leader orof anyone of the participants; average speed of the current leader or ofanyone of the participants, among others; present speed of anyone of theparticipants; and Revolutions Per Minute (RPM) of the engine of anyoneof the participants.

Although the foregoing invention has been described in detail by way ofillustration and example for purposes of clarity and understanding, itwill be recognized that the above described invention may be embodied innumerous other specific variations and embodiments without departingfrom the spirit or essential characteristics of the invention. Variouschanges and modifications may be practiced, and it is understood thatthe invention is not to be limited by the foregoing details, but ratheris to be defined by the scope of the claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system comprising: a display; one or morememory devices or storage components adapted to store instructions; andone or more processors in communication with the display and the one ormore memory devices or storage components, the one or more processorsadapted to execute the instructions to perform or to control performanceof operations, the operations comprising: determine a location of thesystem; determine that the system has arrived at a venue associated witha point of interest based on the location of the system; in response tothe determination that the system arrived at the venue, capture an imageof surroundings of the system and overlay the image of the surroundingsof the system with information regarding the point of interest, theinformation based on the location of the system; and cause the displayto present the overlaid image.
 2. The system of claim 1, wherein theoperations further comprise cause the display to present directions to aseat location at the venue.
 3. The system of claim 1, wherein: the pointof interest includes a location of a friend or family member of a userof the system at the venue, a retail store in the venue, a food serviceprovider in the venue, a restaurant in the venue, a restroom in thevenue, an automated teller machine (ATM) in the venue, a water fountainin the venue, a landmark in the venue, an attraction at the venue, or alocation of a parked car of the user; and the information overlaying thesurroundings includes an image associated with the point of interest. 4.The system of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise determinea current time.
 5. The system of claim 4, wherein the operations furthercomprise recommend a user action based on the current time, a scheduleof an event at the venue, and the venue.
 6. The system of claim 5,wherein the information includes directions to the point of interest. 7.The system of claim 1, wherein the operations further comprise cause thedisplay to present a seat location at the venue of a friend of a user ofthe system.
 8. The system of claim 1, wherein the operations furthercomprise receive a request, from a user of the system, for informationregarding a second point of interest.
 9. The system of claim 8, whereinthe operations further comprise, based on the request, anticipate afurther request from the user.
 10. A method for assisting a user,comprising: determining a location of a user device; determining thatthe user device has arrived at a venue associated with a point ofinterest based on the location of the user device; in response to thedetermination that the user device arrived at the venue, capturing animage of surroundings of the user device and overlaying the image of thesurroundings of the user device with information regarding the point ofinterest, the information based on the location of the user device andincluding directions to the point of interest; and presenting theoverlaid image on the user device.
 11. The method of claim 10, whereinthe directions to the point of interest are based on a current locationof the user, a seat location of the user in the venue, time to start ofan event at the venue, estimated time to the point of interest,congestion along a route to the point of interest, or a combinationthereof.
 12. The method of claim 10, further comprising determining awalking distance to the point of interest.
 13. The method of claim 12,further comprising providing, to the user device, the walking distanceand time left to walk to the point of interest.
 14. The method of claim10, further comprising providing, to the user device, real-time eventinformation.
 15. The method of claim 10, further comprising determininga current time.
 16. The method of claim 15, further comprisingrecommending a user action based on the current time, a schedule of anevent at the venue, and the venue.
 17. A non-transitory machine-readablemedium comprising a plurality of machine-readable instructions which,when executed by one or more processors, are adapted to cause a systemto perform operations, the operations comprising: determining a locationof a user device; determining that the user device has arrived at avenue associated with a point of interest based on the location of theuser device; in response to the determination that the user devicearrived at the venue, capturing an image of surroundings of the userdevice and overlaying the image of the surroundings of the user devicewith information regarding the point of interest, the information basedon the location of the user device and including directions to the pointof interest; and presenting the overlaid image on the user device. 18.The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 17, wherein thepoint of interest includes a location of a friend or family member of auser of the system at the venue, a retail store in the venue, a foodservice provider in the venue, a restaurant in the venue, a restroom inthe venue, an automated teller machine (ATM) in the venue, a waterfountain in the venue, a landmark in the venue, an attraction at thevenue, or a location of a parked car of the user.
 19. The non-transitorymachine-readable medium of claim 17, wherein the operations furthercomprise: determine a walking distance to the point of interest based onthe location of the user device; and overlay on the image of thesurroundings the walking distance and a time left to walk to the pointof interest.
 20. The non-transitory machine-readable medium of claim 19,wherein the operations further comprise overlaying on the image of thesurroundings a recommendation of products, services, or both, that areassociated with coupons, discounts, or other promotions.